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Publication date: September 25, 2020
Mercedes set a rather sinister tone for the coming weekend in Sochi after dominating the second practice of the Russian Grand Prix.
Valtteri Bottas secured a practice double on Friday by topping the timesheets with a 1: 33.519 in FP2, with Hamilton climbing from his unrepresentative P19 on Friday morning to P2 and two tenths behind Bottas.
So there was a pretty substantial gap with Daniel Ricciardo in P3, with Carlos Sainz, Lando Norris and Sergio Pérez capable of being faster than Max Verstappen in P7.
Rounding out the top 10 were Charles Leclerc, Esteban Ocon and Sebastian Vettel.
– Mercedes-AMG F1 (@ MercedesAMGF1) September 25, 2020
The start of FP2 was much quieter and quieter compared to the eventful FP1. After the first 30 minutes of the session, it was a familiar Mercedes 1-2 at the head of the group with less than a tenth that separated Hamilton and Bottas.
The British was superior with a 1: 33.786 and the difference with the rest was 1.5 seconds. However, Daniel Ricciardo, in P3, was on medium tires during his first season.
Bottas then found further improvement in his second race, eclipsing Hamilton’s time by a couple of tenths despite a sloppy final sector. The benchmark was now 1: 33.519.
Meanwhile, Hamilton would have a nervous moment on his last fastest lap.
Lewis Hamilton closes! ⚠️
He was on a fast lap there but at least he avoided the barriers and is still first on the timesheet 👍#RussianGP 🇷🇺 # F1 pic.twitter.com/hONg5A39eT
– Formula 1 (@ F1) September 25, 2020
Get the official Mercedes 2020 collection through the Formula 1 store
After the first FP2 qualifying drills, Verstappen, who has downplayed Red Bull’s chances of success in Sochi this weekend, found himself in sixth place behind Ricciardo’s Renault, Norris’s McLaaren and Racing Point’s Racing Point. Sergio Pérez. It would eventually go down to P7.
Ricciardo managed to narrow the gap slightly with Mercedes but was still more than a second behind in P3. Verstappen’s awkward FP2 continued with a block and spin at Turn 14 that sparked some bad words from the Dutchman.
For the final 35 minutes of the session, attention was diverted from the track and the race simulator races into the Formula 1 boardroom as former Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali was officially confirmed as Chase Carey’s replacement. as CEO.
Domenicali will officially begin his new role on January 1 and Carey will take over as non-executive chairman.
FP2 timesheet
1 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 1: 33.519 35 laps
2 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 0.267s 33
3 Daniel Ricciardo Renault 1.058s 25
4 Carlos Sainz McLaren 1,204s 34
5 Lando Norris McLaren 1,328s 32
6 Sergio Pérez Racing Point 1.371s 33
7 Max Verstappen Red Bull 1.529s 29
8 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1,533s 33
9 Esteban Ocon Renault 1.620s 26
10 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 1.664s 34
11 Pierre Gasly AlphaTauri 1.691s 33
12 Alex Albon Red Bull 1.723s 30
13 Daniil Kvyat AlphaTauri 1.942s 35
14 Kimi Raikkonen Alfa Romeo Racing 1.997s 32
15 Nicholas Latifi Williams 2,044s 29
16 George Russell Williams 2,056s 28
17 Race Point Lance Stroll 2.108s 33
18 Kevin Magnussen Haas 2,210s 30
19 Antonio Giovinazzi Alfa Romeo Racing 2.534s 34
20 Romain Grosjean Haas 3,339s 32
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